
Class E 3 (o 4 

Book__:_S_SJ2.__ 



* / 

DISCOURSE, 



.-riJ"^'"''* 



DELIVERED IN / t? /^ 



STONEHAM, f-^^^sj APRIL 8, 1819. 



BEING 



THE DAY OF THE STATE FAST. 



By JOHN H. STEVENS, V. D. M. 

.CASTOR OF THE CHURCH IN SAID TOWN. 



PUBLISHED BY DESIRE OF THE HEARERS. 



BENNINGTON, F/. 

?RINT£D BY DARIUS CLARK, 3i. CO. 

1813. 




.$'?3 



U. 



3 7 it 



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7'v 



DISCOURSE. 



; Judges v. 23. 

Curse ye Mcroz, said the angel of the Lord, curse ye nit- 
tcily the inhabitants ihtreof ; because they came not to the 
help of the Lord, io rlie hel^ of the Lord against the mighty. 

^LL scrijiture is given by ins/iiration of Goti^ and is /trfji/a- 
ih for du^rine^for reproof ^ for corrtdion^ jor imtiuHion in 
righteousness. 

The passage I first read, we find recorded in the song com" 
•posed l)y D.Darah, an inspired prophetess, and judge in Is- 
•ratl. She composed and sung this song in con^equciue o\ d 
signal victory gained wve-r thctrcmies of Israel, in tirfie of 
v^ar; a war -A-hich God liimstK hid commanded them to en- 
gage in, ior the defence o\ their righ:s, liberties and blessings. 

I>rae'!, fiT whom G.^d had done great thing?., einned witii 
-a high hand against hint j ai,d ^o punish thtm for their idol- 
atrv and w ickcdness, iht Lord suffered Jat>in, a powerful king 
ofCanraan, to oppress them, ard bring thtm into bondage, 
-and atriict them t« enty vears. This humbled them, and they 
cried unto the L.)rd, and he dirtacd Deborah to call upoa 
Bar?k to cnlie:l an armv, and march against the army of Ja- 
bm c.>mmar.d^d by Si^tra, and tie Lord promised to'deliver 
them inro nis hand. When the requisition for men was 
made, some of the governors offered themselves and the peo- 
ple wdl-ngly ; others held back srd refused their aid : hovr- 
tvtr Deborah the prophetess, and B-irr-k the general with his 
little army, marchen ai^d atracktd the mighty ho-t of.i!-.fiir 
enemies and overthrow them, and so delivered their nation 
<rom oppression; frr the Lord was with :hem, and forght 
l.)r Israel against their eneniics. This one battle was so di- 
ci^ive, that it nut an end to the war, ant| the land hrd re^C 
j...r-y )t?>rs. Dtb-.r^Ji ard B.irak celebrated this vS^cry in -4. 
divii e s;^ng, in wjjich they call upoii king-: and all people to 



4 

consider what wonderful things God had done for Israel ; 
they describe the sin and misery of the nation ; they render 
praiiC to God; they give commendation to some ol the Is- 
raelites, and pass censuies on others, especially the inhabi- 
tants of Meroz, mentioned in the text. Curse ye Me r ok, said 
the angel of the Lorci^ curse ye bitterly the inhabitants thereof^ 
because they came not to the helji of the Lord^ the help of the Lord 
again, t the mighty. 

This passage of Scripture contains the following general 
truths : 

1. One nation may be so oppressed by another, that it 
may be the will of the Lord for them to take up arms, and 
go to war with their oppressors, 

2. In such a case, it is the du'y of the whole nation to 
unite against the common enemy. 

3. If any part of the nation, in these circumstances with- 
hold their aid and help from their own nation, and side with 
the enemy, it is highly displeasing to God. This was the 
condud of the inhabitants of Meroz, and the angel of the 
Lord ordered them to be cursed, with a bitter curte, 

4. A nation engaged in a just war, a war for the defence 
of their just rights, a war that God approves — such a war 
God considers as his own cause, and to help in such a cause 

is to come to the help of the Lord ; and if the nation in these \ 
circumstances humble themselves for their sins, and cry un- 
to the Lord, he will be with them, and whatever difficulties 
may be in the way, however powerful the enemy may be, if 
they have nire hundred chariots of war, or a thousand ships 
of war, yet the Lord will give vi6tory to the opprcbsed, who 
humbly trust in him. 

In order to illustrate and make application of this suhje(fV, 
for our benefit on this occasion, I phall consider the simiiaii- 
ity betu'een the chara»fler and condu<^t of Israel and that of 
our nation, and the similarity between God's dealings to- 
wards Israel and that of our nation. 

I. What great things the Lord did for I^^rael in bringing 
them out of bondage in Egyp^ conducting them to Cannaan, 
CcTsting out the heathen, and planting ti.tm in that goad land. 
Israel, the seed of Abraham, God's friend, were eoolavrd in 
Egypt ; Phiroah, a cruel tyrant, oppressed them, and set task- 
masters over them, and made them "^erve with rigcrj and pre^ 



vented their worshipping God agreeably to the dltf^ates of 
their own consciences. They cried unto the Lord in their 
distress, and he heard them, and j^ent Moses to deliver them'. 
God wrought wonders in £gypt by the hand of Moses ; anil 
at length he brc ught his people out, and led them on to me 
IRed Sea, which the Lord divided, and led through on dry- 
ground ; their enemies attempting to follow, were swept a- 
way by the returning billows. He led them in the wilder- 
ness forty years, with a pillar of cloud by day, and a pillar 
of fire by night; he wrought mary wonderful miracles on 
their behalf, and at last divided Jordan, and led them over 
into Canaan. And when the heathen combmed against 
them, the Lord fought for them, and gave them the vidory, 
and settled them quietly in that good land, flowing as wiili 
milk and honey, and they spread abroad, and became a great 
nation. 
I What a piflure this exhibits of the great and marvellous 
things God has done for our nation. Our fathers were ia 
bondage in England, afflidtd with the hard hand of tvranny 
ar.d oppression ; they were persecuted, oppressed and pro- 
i scribed ; and not suffered the free enjoyment of their holy re- 
ligion. They were oppressed with enormous taxes, were 
prosecuted, imprisoned, and fined, for worshipping God 
agreeably to the di6lates of their own conscience. They cri- 
ed unto the Lord in their distress, and he heard them, atid 
put it into their hearts to emigrate from their native country, 
to this then howling wilderness. The Lord took our fath- 
ers under his protedion, and brought them across the wide 
ocean, and planted tiiem in this American land; and when 
the heathen, who were numerous, combined against them, 
the Lord was on their side : he weakened and destroyed the 
enemy by pestilence, and in various ways, and gave our fath- 
ers vidory ; he caused thein to take root, increase, and spread 
abroad in this land ; he bleibcd th'^m in ti.eir basket and store, 
ai d raided them up to a great peop!e. And when the mtnh- 
er coHntry saw their pr()s[)eri:y, she envied them, and sou,^;ht 
to oppress them here as she had done at home ; she sent over 
her fleets and armies to enforce her unjust mandates. Our 
F;H hers, trusting in the Lord, took up arms, determined to 
tieiend their rights; and the Goi\ of armies was with them, 
^«d delcatcd the enemy. ar:d led them on to viitorv, indc 



6 

^^endence, and a rank among the nations of the earth. The 
Xord has, since that period, greatly blessed and prospered 
this nation, and favored us with every temporal and spiritual, 
civil and religious privilege ; he has caused us to become a 
great, rich, and powerful naiioH. God has done great and 
marvellous things for us as a people. 

s. After God had done such great things for Israel, and 
bad settled them in the good land of Canaan in peace, where 
they enjoyed his word and ordinances, and every blessing, 
we should have supposed they would have forsaken all other 
"Gods, and feared, worshipped, and served the Lord Jeho- 
vah with all the heart. But instead of this, they sinned a- 
gainst him, they forsook the rock of their salvation, and 
"went after strange god?, and worshipi^ed them, as it is said 
in our context, They chose them nevj gods^ and did evil in the 
sight of the Lord, ' 

And has not our nation, in this particular, done as Israel 
did, forsaken God, and done great evil in his sight ? When 
we coHsider what great things God has done for our nation, 
in planting of it in this good land, increasing, and prosper- 
ii)g ihem ; and when their entmies rose up, & came in like a i; 
fi'jod, the Lord lifted up a standard, and arrested iheir pro- j 
gress, and gave us vii^ory, gave us peace, and established us ' 
as a hat.-on ; and blessed us on every hand, and gave us his 
word, his sabbaih, his gospel, and ordinances ; when we 
consider how much God has done for us, might it not have 
b.een expelled that we should have b^en an obedient people, 
that we should havr chosen God for our portion, and feared, 
lovtd 5iid ser^'ed irf>^ wi'h all the hf.-rr ; that (ur inquiry 
uodld have been, What shall ive render unto the Lord^ for all 
his benefits unto »i, as a pei'pie ? But instead or tr-is hun«ble, 
pit)U^, obcdienr. holy condi:6t, vve have, Jesi^urun like, 
waxed fat, and k eked against the Lord ; ue ha^ e as a pe'^ple 
fiT-aken t.-e Lord G. d of our lifcla her% and li^litly es- 
tttmtd the rock of aur saiva.ion. Ltke I raei. we h^^ve 
dot.e great evil in the sighr ol the L'^ni. cind provMktd the 
Hv'iy One to ai ger All U-ds <f iniq.iuy has ab^uir.d- 
t-(i in tliis nalio;;. aTul been crvipg to lie^vcn for vcpgesrce. 
We have been ungraieful ro G k1, the g vtr of all oJ^r iner- 
c\s.< ; we ^a'e been ungratelul ri>r our hc.ilth and srrerg^h ; j 
U.-^-<irt!ul lor cu; f.)od ar.d raiiiitn: ; U(>gra'e!ul for tur civiL] 



and religious liberty ; ungrattful for peace, tHat wc have en- 
joyed so long ; ungrateful for ihc sabbaih, the gosprl, and iis 
ordinances; iingrarefui lor Jesus Christ, and his great salva- 
tion; ungrateful for the Holy Spirit, and his gracious inHu- 
cncci in the conversion of sinners. 

Pride is a sin which has greatly prevailed in this nation. — 
We have been liited up with pride ; we have been proud of 
our independence ; proud of our liberty ; proud of our cou- 
siitutions of government; proud of our lulcrs, our num- 
bers, and wealth. Some have been proud of their religion ; 
and others of their wickedness, glorying in their shame. — 
Pride is a haiefol, dangerous sin. Pride gses before destyuc- 
lion, and a haughty spirit before a fall. God is said to knoiu 
the jiroud afar If. to hate pride ; and he has said he ivill stain 
the pride of all fie sh. 

l^rolanencss is another awful sin in our land. We have 
become a profane nation ; thousands, and thousands, every 
day, blaspheming the holy name of God, uttering horrid 
caths and imprecations upon themselves and others. AH 
ages and sexes are uttering this profane language ; even little 
children, cursing and sw taring, and taking ihe holy and 
reverend names of God and Christ in vain. Thou shall not 
take the name of the Lo'd thy God, in vain, is the divine com- 
mand ; by reason of siveaung t'le land tnourncth^ and thepUaS' 
ant places of the ivilderness are dried up. 

Jn;empirance is another prevalent sin in this nation ; the 
intemperate use of spiritnus liquors has become awhilly a- 
Jarming. It is thought by some, that ardent spirits, con- 
sumed in this nation, cost more than to maintain gfjvern- 
ment; many are given up to intoxication, spt ndlng their 
property, destroying thtir heahh, biir-ging shame and pov- 
erty upon their families, and firtmg thtir souls for perdition. 
This vice leads on to many others, such asidlentss, garni; g, 
lewdness, and the like crirninal vices. This sin has become 
so prevalent and alarming, that seriour penple through the: 
.^tate nnd nation, are uniting tot;e;her and forming societies 
icr the txp'css purpose of sup[;ressinjr it 

\ Falsehood is another great sin, u iiich increase? the guth 
of this natir.n. A lying spiri: has tckcn (H.sse^sion of the 
liearts of many. What fal^elcod^ arc urtertd by rnany to 
cover ihtir own wicktdnessj to deceive and cheat their lei- 



8 

low men in their dealings, and to injure the charafters of mcn- 
both in and out of office ? How are our public prints, which 
ought to be vehicles of truth, turned into channels of false- 
hood and misrepresentation r 

Gaming and vain amusements are prevailing sins which 
many live in, and many professed Christians too, to the dis- 
honor of God and disgrace of religion. Sabbath breaking 
is a great sin ia our land : how is the Lord's day violated, 
and turned by many into a holiday for feasting, and drink- 
ing, and visiting, and riding abroad, and doing worldly bu- 
siness ? God said to Israel, If ye vmU not hearken unto me ti 
halloio the Sailath day^ and not to bear a burden^ even entering 
in at the gates of Jerusalem^ on the Sabbath day ; then will ^ 
kindle afire in the gates thereof, and it shall devour the Jialace, 
•f JerusaCem^ and it shall not be quenched* 

Lewdness, perjury, and oppression, are great sins in thi: 
land. Division, strife, and contention, are abounding sins 
which threaten the ruin of our nation ; for the Lord has said 
A kingdom divided against itself cannct stand. An inordinat< 
thirst for property and love of money is to be found amon{ 
the prevailing sins in this nation. We are told in the wor( 
of God, The love of money is the root of all evil. Perhaps then 
never was a nation that manifested greater love for money 
and zeal to acquire wealth, than this nation has for many 
years. It has been spoken of by other nations what lovers of 
money Americans were; many have made a god o\ wealth, 
and worshipped mammon. It is owing to this cupidity in 
many, that the noble flame of patriotism, that burnt in the 
hearts of their fathers, is quenched in them, and they are 
.disposed to supply the enemy, for the bake of gain. Idola- 
try has been no smail sin in this land : we have set up idols 
in our hcarr, and worshipped them. Theft, and robbery, 
ard murder, art great sins which not a few in this nation 
have been concerned in perpetrating. The Lord saio to Is- 
rael, IVlII a man rob God ? Het ye have robbed me^ even this 
-whole nation. I'his has bten our criminal conduct ; we have 
robbed God of that love, homrige, prai'-c and adoration, 
V. hich was his dnt , and our duty to render. Manv great 
and awful errors hnve been embiaced by many in tills nation, 
suth as Arniinianism, Antinomianism, Sociniani^m, Uni 
vertalisni, D-.ismj a:yJ A'.heism. Jesas Christ, the eterni; 



"9 

• Son of God, has been called an imposter ; the B'.ble has bec:t 
rjdicultd as priestcraft and delusion ; experinienral religion 
has been denounced as enthusiasm, and the work of ihc spir- 
it of God ascribed to Safan by many. A preached gospel 
and holy ordinances have been dtspieet! and negle<^cti, and 
opposition to God, to Christ and his holy kingdom, has 
greatly abounded in this naticn. O 1 what a binlul people 
we have been; whet evil we have done in the si^ht of the 
Lord, to provoke him to anger, and pull do'.vn judgmentii 
upon us, as it is at this time ! Our sins have been the pri- 
Riary cause ot all our sufferings, and our calamity at thft 

• present day ; I fear and deprecate them more ihan aU th?^ 
enemies that have, or can come against us» 

3. God was angry with Israel for their Idolatry, ingrati- 
tude profanenes") and wickedness, and to punish them, he 
sold ihem into the hand ot Jabin, a powerful king of Ca- 
naan, as appears trom our context. Jabin was a great king 
in those days ; he had nine hundred chariots of iron for war 
and his army was equal. It is written, twenty years hr: 
mightily oppressed the children of- Israel ; he disarmed them 
and maile them tributary ; he had his soldiers stationed thro* 
the land, &: by the high way's, L ihcir oppressions were such, 
that It is said by Deborah in her song, tnat tU village: wer^ 
•■ deserted h their inhabitants ; t/ie high iviys zvere uncccuhied^ 
■ and the travellers walked though by loays to ?void the eneniy ; 
when even the women went out to clravv water, the archers 
would wantouly shoo- their arrov^s at rhem Thus the Lord 
for twenty years suffered the tyrant Jabin to oppress Israel, 
to punish them for their wickedness, to humble them, and 
cause them to feel their dependence upon him. Now the 
Lord has been trea.ing our nation in the same way, aiid for 
t> e same reasons. To puiiish us for our many and gr-cas; 
- sins against the Lord, he lias suffer-d the kli-g o{ Eng'ai-d. for 
about twenty year'-, might'ly to oppress us. It is abour 
tvveniy years tince England began ti; impress our seamen anvi 
take our ve.-^cls on one pretext (>r another, and innilt us and 
make depredations upon ui ; and tiiere is n ) dt;ubt we have 
bttn plufidcrrd of vastly more property, and have si ffcrred 
more fierional injury, in the course of iweniy year:, from the 



10 

king of England and his nation, than Israel did in the sam^^ 
time from Jabin and his nation. Jabin was a powerful king, 
he had nine hundred chariots of Iron. George the third 
has been a powerful king ; he has had a thousand sh'ps ml 
war, and by them he has commanded the ocean and claimed 
it as his property ; by them he has plundered the nations, 
slaughtered thousands and tens of thousands, reduced cities to 
ashes, and spread desolation far and wide. With his thous- 
and ships he has committed every outrage and cruelty, and 
robbery, and murder, manstcaling and depredation, that the 
most barbarous nations have been guilty of. England has 
taken from us, in time of peace, without any just provoca- 
tion, about a thousand vessels, with their rich cargoes, car- 
ried them into her own ports, condemned and sold them, 
and put the money into her own coffers, to the amount of 
many millions of dollars. All this we have borne without 
resistance for many years. We have complained and re- 
monstrated, and plead with them by negociation, to cease this 
plundering and taking our vessels, and to do us justice. — 
They have amused us with fair words but continued the 
practice. Can the annals of history furnish an instance, 
where a nation at peace with another nation, and without 
giving any just cause of offence, has been plundered to the 
amount our nation his ? Not one I presume. 7 here never 
was, and I trust there never will be such a case, while man 
inhabits the earth. 

But this oppression, great and long as it has been, is not to 
be compared to another we have endured ; that is, impress- 
ing, holding in cruel bondage, starving, whipping, and some- 
times putting to death our native citizens, who are seamen. 
For twenty years they have continued the practice of im- 
pressing our seamen, out of our merchant vessels, aboard 
their ships of war ; this I consider to be mansiealing, which 
the w ord of God ranks among the greatest crimes. It is im- 
possible to ascertain the exa6t number they have impressed ; 
but from the public documents I have seen, from the num- 
bers found on board their ships we have taken, and the state- 
ment of their muster books which have fallen into our hands, 
trom the best information that 1 have been able to obtain on 
'JiisGubjei^, it is my ooinioiv, that ia the course of twenty 



11 

years Great Britain lias impressed more than ti-jenty thousand 
of our seamen, multitudes of whom were native born Ame- 
ricans. Thus he husband has been torn from his beloved 
wife and children ; the son from his parents, his brothers, 
and sisters ; the citizen from his home and native land ; and 
been wafted to distant climes, and held in cruel bondage, one, 
five, ten and eighteen years. To hear the statement of some 
under oath, who have lived to retura, describing their suf- 
ferings, is enough to fill the soul with horror : some depose 
and say, when they were impressed, because they would net 
enter, they have been put m irons, kept on bread and water, 
and whipped a dozen lashes every week, until, worn down 
by hunger and scourging, they were forced to enter. One 
deposed, that after ne was impressed he attempted to escape, 
was taken, carried back, and whipped sixty lasher, and then 
immersed in cold water one hour. This is the way our na- 
tive citizens have been tortured aboard their floating Bastiles. 
Who that has American blood running in his veins, can hear 
of these cruelties inflifted on our own citizens, without in- 
dignation ? Yet we are told by some that this is a small affair, 
not worth contending for a moment ; but let such unfeeling 
i)Ouls be placed under the discipline of a Britisn man of war, 
for one year, and they would no longer speak with such ap- 
athy about the sufferingsof our seafaring brethren. 

England has come into our waters with her ships, fired 
tipon our citizens and killed them. She has sent spies a- 
mong us, 10 stir up division, withdraw the people from their 
government, and dismember the union ; she ha^ armed and 
excited the barbarians of the wilderness to make war upon 
us, lay waste our frontiers, to butcher and scalp men women 
and children ; and the scalps, reeking in blood, I have un- 
tlerstood, they have been in the habit of purchasing at six 
dollars a-piece — but am I stating the horrid condud of a 
christian nation, or that of Turks and Arabs ? Yes, that of a 
Christian nation towards a Christian nation, i have been 
iioncing sorre of those evih and oppressions we have been 
suffering from that government, which has been styled, " the 
/jul'-jjark of our religion, and the luor/cl's last hojie.''^ But from 
sucri a bulwark, may the Lord in n>Tcy save us and our pos- 
terity. However pious and godly many of the people m 



12 

England may be, and I believe God has many dear children'" 
there, who are groaning under the oppression of their rulers ; 
vet I do believe in nr,y heart, that there is nor a more cor- 
j-upt and wicked government on earth than the British gov» 
ernment; they have in my opinion caused more wars, blood- 
shed, misery and desolation on the earth than any other go- 
vernment ; I believe they have been the cause of most of 
the wars Napoleon has been engaged in, which have caused 
rivers of bio )d to flow. No doubv tljey were the cause of 
the late war between France and Russia, which ilie last year 
swept (probably) three hundred thousand souls into ettrniiy, 
1 believe the blood of millions is crying to heaven for venge- 
ance upon this corrupt government, and undoubtedly the 
time is not far distant, when the Lord in his anger will over- 
turn it ; and in answer to the prayers of the good people of 
England, bless them with a better government. The cru- 
elties which have been perpetrated by this government on 
herown subjefts in England and Ireland, on the Danes, and 
in many parts of Europe, in the Ea>t and West Indies, in 
Af^rica and America, are enough to a^^tonish heaven and earth 
were they fully known : but enough is known to fill the 
soul v.'ich horror I 

What wanton waste of property did they cause in this 
land In the former war ? Falmouth, Charlestown, Danbury, 
and many other fine towns were wantonly burnt to ashes — 
But this was nothing compared to the savage cruelties com- 
mitted on our poor prisoners, that the fortune of war had put 
in their power. More than eleven thousand, it has been 
said, v.'e:e poisoned, starved, and by other cruel treatment, 
destroyed aboard their prison ship, at New -York ; and Wil- 
liam Cunningham, who was provost martial to the royal ar- 
my at New- York, (afterwards executed for forgery) confess- 
ed before his execution, that w//// and without the orders of 
]\h gc"-j£r::rj.'efU, more than two thousand American prisoners 
lie had iiiarved to death in the dltfc^rent churches of New- 
York, where thtry were confuifd ; and that he had caus'^d tv/o 
hundred and sevtnty-iive to be hung in the dead of the nighr, 
and buried ! Give ear, O Mtavens ! and be astonished, O 
rarth ! ! This was the \vny our poor fathers, and brethren, 
vvtire ?;-icr;lijed hv thh ^'-^'err.nTet^t ?.:id its a^^ents, in tht last 



war ; and ihcy have begun the same horriJ practice again in 
the present war. They allow their savage allies to murder, 
and scalp our poor wounded prisoners., and then leave them 
unhurried for the swine to teed upon, as w as the case at the 
River Raisin ; and all too in violation of solemn articles of 
capitulaiion : other prisoners they have shut up in infected 
jails and prison ships, and kept them on rotten damaged pro- 
visions, until disease has ended their days. But my heart 
sickens, and my nerves tremble, at the recital of ihese barbar- 
ities and cruelties which we have suffered from this nation. 
Now say, my hearers — oay an impartial world — have we not 

r cause of war with tiiis nation ? Is not the war, in which we 
are engaged, just ? and may we not believe a God of justice 
approves ol ii r 

4. Israel was so oppressed by Jabin, and had borne his 
t\ranny so long, even twenty years, that ir was the will of 
the Lord, that they should take up arms, and go to war, and 
fight the oppressors. And the Lord revealed his mind & will 
to Deborah a prophetess. The people cried unto the Lord ia 
their distress, & he heard them, he saw that they had borne the 
oppression of this haughty tyrant long enough without resist- 
ance ; hence he directed Deborah to call Barak, and order 
liim to collect an army and fight their oppressors. H'^re is 
one instance among many others, recorded in the Bible, 
where it was the will of God for a nation to go to war with 
their opptessors, for the defence of their just rights ; and I as 
fully believe, that it is the will of the Lord God of our fore- 
j fatliers, that our nation should take up arms, and go to war 
I with Great Britain our oppressor. for aught 1 can see, as 
grea; causes existed for war in our case, as did in Israel's. 
) They had been oppressed for a long time, even twenty years ; 
so have we. Their oppressors were powerlul, they had 
nine hundred chariots of war; our oppressors are powerful, 
they have a thousand fhips of war. Israel had been robbed, 
and plundered, and their persons enslaved. We have been 
plundered of miUiotu^ and many of our citizr^as enslaved. 
Their essential ri"[lits were assailed ; so are ours. Fhev un- 
doubtedly remonstrated agiin^t the condj£t of their oppres- 
sors ; we have done the same. We have remonstrated, ne- 
;^ociated, implored,, and entre:i:sd our oppressors to ceajc: 



14 

their depredations, leave off impressing, abusing, and en- 
slaving our citizen seame!i ; but a!l to no purpose. Nov/ if 
we have been oppressed as long as Israel was—if we have 
been plundered as nnuch as tht-y were — if we have been en- 
slaved, and the persons of our citizens injured as much as 
they were — if we have given the ene;ny no just cause to op- 
prass and injure us — if we have sought for years in the most 
fair and honest v. ay to obtain redress of our grievances in a 
peaceable way — why is it not just and right for us now to 
draw the sword, and defend our right; ? And have we not ev- 
idence that it is the will of God r and that he approves of the 
war in which we are now engaged against Great Britain ? I 
believe we have* 

In this ^ge of the church and the world, we are not to ex- 
pert the Lord to mike known his mind and will by sp-^cial 
revelation, as he did (o Israel ; neither are wc to look far his 
miraculous interposition in our favor, and the destruction of 
our enemies, as he graiifed to Israel But we are to judge of 
God's mmd and will, from a view of his moral charadter, 
which is eternally tne same, and from j:)arallel ca-^es, wher« 
God has declared expressly or implicitly his approbation of a 
ration's going to war for the defence of the rights and bles- 
sings he i.as bestowed upon them. Now, judging by this 
rult, I think it i.^ a clear case, that God approves of the war ia 
which wc ire now engaged for the defence of our juit rights. 
I am far from supposing it would be just and right for a na- 
tion to ^o to war, for every insult and injury that they might 
receive from another nation. No, to make a war just and 
righteous, and have it approved by heaven, the injuries maist 
be many and great, and long persisted in ; they must be with- 
out any just provocation ; and th • i/'.jured naion must make 
all suitaole exertions, amicably and peaceably, to obtain re- 
dress of their grievance?. Now 1 believe in mv heart, all 
this is true of our na'ion ; 1 have in my possession all the 
printed documents laid beh)re Congress, of ail thenegociation 
for years betwen our government and Great Britain, and I 
<:annotsee what could liave been said or tlone more bv negjo* 
cia.ion, to convince the enemy of their wrong, and prevail 
with them to cease their dcfnedations and oppression.^, and 
<lo us justice. For vcars, diplom^^lic lan^'ia^e has been e>t- 



15 

hausted but Ir. vain ; hence the iiiftrence is clear as ihe sun 
in thefiriuament olheaven, tiiat the war, *m which our na:ioa 
is engaged, is a just and a ri^hieoui war, acti ihat God ap- 
proves it. 

5. As we have evidence the war in which we are now en- 
gaged, is a just and rigiueous war, a war which God ap- 
proves, Jt is thec.uty o{ the whole nation to uc.iie in it. it 
was the du>y ot all l-rael to unite and grant ..11 their aid and 
help ;nthe -var aga:nst Jabia their oppressor; every tribe, 
ciry, town, and family belonged to the same nation, wtre ail 
bound together by the sanie naiiot-.a! cotnpaft, were liable to 
the same oppression Irom the eiieniy, and would rtap niu ual 
benefit in case 0/ vidory ; hence it was the duty of all to 
come up to the help of t.ie Lord, the help of the Lord agaii».t 
the mighty : and, my hearers, it is equally the duty of our 
whole nation, to unicc and help in the war we art: forced in- 
to, for the defence of our juM and violated rights, h is the 
duty of every state, every city, every town, every family and 
person in this r.aiion, to unite all their wisdom, all their 
wealth, all their power, and all their energies, against the 
■common fre, who has so long and so wiintonly oppressed us. 
We all belong to the same nation : the states are all ccjoted- 
cdrated and bound together in the most solen^io manner, un- 
der one and the safne consriiution ; we are a great body p(d- 
itic, and as in lise natural, so in the poliiiLal body, i/or-e mem- 
her iujfcr^ alt the members sujfir 'Viitk it ; cr one msn.lisr be hon- 
oredf ail ihc members rfjoue wuh it. 

We have all been insulled, we have all Seen oppressed, 
we have ail h^tn injured, ue have ail ielt the tttecSts of the 
plunder and robbery of ihe er.eniy ; it lias increased the 
price of most foreign irticles one thiid, wiiich we all help 
consume ; we arc ail hu t by the impressnitnt of our poor 
seamen ; we are all concerned \\\ the injuries heaped upon 
our nation, and wc shall all be bcnifiiea by compelling the 
<:nemy to cease her depredation*, and m«k.e a jubt aiid honor- 
able peace with us. Hence it is the iir.perious duty of every 
se6tion tji the country, of every par: of the i;u;io:;, l-j mii'.c 
Siiainst cur "real and c'-.m:r.Dri ep.ectv. 

00 tf 



T6 

'6, T am led to cbserve, that some pzrt of Israiel refused 
their aid and htip in the war against Jabin, fhcir cruel op- 
pressor, and the Lord wa^ exceedingly displeased with them, 
and .he angel of the Lord ordered them to be cursed with a 
bitter cure^e. When it was' determined to take up arms a- 
gainst Jabin, there was undoubtedly an express sent to all the 
tribes, ro every town and city, to come up to the help of the 
JLord, and afFv:)rd their aid in some way against the enemy j 
and we should have supposed they would ail have united as 
one man, to defend their violated rights, and obtain satis- 
faction for twenry y*ars '^ppresjion. But this was not 
the ca'e ; some, it secerns b> the iacred account, turned out 
and offered their services willingly : they were true patrio's. 
This was the case with the tribe of Zcbulon and Naprhali, 
and some others; lirael was divided into tribes, much as 
our nation is into stales, and each tribe had a head or chief, 
Cfllltrd a e^overnor, as our states have. Some of these gov- 
ernors offered themselves and their people willingly, to help 
in the war ; see the 9th and 18 h verse of the context — My 
hearty <^aid Debor.ah, is tcwards the governors of Israel^ that of- 
^ereJ themselves 'Kti'llhigh amon^ the peo/ile : bless ye the Lord, 
Zebulor. and ^ajihthali loere a /leople that jeo^iarded their lives 
unto the deaths in the high places of the^eld. Issachar and Ben- 
jamin are celebrated as turning out and helping m this con- 
test, and some from some other tribes; but some of the tribes 
'and {;e jpie would not help their brethren in this war ; ;hey 
staid at -h.ime, and would not go ; some of the governors 
would not let the people go ; some thought they had better 
fameiy bear their sufferings, than to wage war with such a 
powerful enemy ; they feared the nine hundred chariots of 
iron : others thought the war would cost so much, that tiiey 
bad better be slaves ;han engage in it ; that probably they 
should lo-e their lives or eome of their friends ; they had lo^t 
their spirit and former parrioiism, and were prepared to bear 
the yoke of tyranny ; o*^hers, (ut doubtedly) had been favor- 
ed by the enemy, and perhaps had grown rich by traflicing 
with them, and supplyiag their armies with provision. Those 
of this class were from these or som.e other sordid moiives, in 
'favor of.fhe enemy, and ptohably jusrifi'rd their horrid oppres- 
sion and cruelty in tbf.land ; some of them mip.hr have inter- 
;«riarried vith ;he rnrmyj ai:d formed >-peci?.l cnnnexions, and 



IT 

•■xveTe on terms of intimacy, and probably became worshippers 
'of their heathen gods. Hence they were utterly opposed to 
the war ; they had rather their nation should be oppresetl 
twenty years longer than go to war ; such chara6\ers as the«e, 
were then, what in modern times are called /oW^/, enemies to 
their own country, and Iriends to the enemy ; such, undoubt- 
edly, were the inhabitants of Mer^z, mentioned in our text. 
Now the conduct of all in Israel who withheld their aid was 
displeasing to God, but especially the condu*^ of Meroz : all 
who refused their help were rebuked, but Meroz was cursed — 
see the context : For the divisions of Reuben there were great 
thoughts of heart, Why abodest thou among the shecji folds^ to 
hear the bleatings of the jlock ? For the divisions of Reuben there 
zoas great searchings of heart, Gilead abode beyond Joidan^ 
and ivhy did Dan remain in shi/is ? Asher continued on the sea. 
shore, and abode in his breaches. All these were censured tor 
their not joinmg in the war ; but it seems their motives were 
not so bad, ai d ihey were not so criminal, as the inhabitants 
of Meroz — see the text : Curse ye Mero%^ said the am el of the 
Lord ; curse ye bitterly the inhabitants thereof because they came 
. not to the helji of tfie Lordy the helji of the Lord against the tnigh' 
iy. Dr. Scott in his note upon this passage observe>, " that 
Meroz had been a flourishing city, but in consequence of 
this curse it became so obscure, that its situation is at presenc 
unknown. He obierves, the inhabitants of Meroz, though 
Israelites, feared the power, and valued the friendship of the 

» enemy, more than they dreaded the power, and desired the 
favor of God, and therefore wcrcjoiaed with the accursed 
C:naanites," 



I 



Now, my brethren, this condu6l in Israel exhibits a pic- 
ture of the conduct of our nation since the declaration of 
war. When we take into view the length and magnitude oi 
our sufFcrinos from Great Britain : when we consider our 
indejendt;nce, bouoht with the btst blood and treasure ot 
our fathers, our esbential rights, and every thing we holn dear 
in lile, assailed and threatened to be lorn from as j when ail 
pacific means 'ailed, and our governrnent, aft^r seven month) 
cool deliberation, resolved^ as the last resort of an ipjured na- 
tion, to take up arm-; and defend our person>, prouertyj an'i 

C ' 



violated rights ; we might have reasonably expe<?led to have, 
seen the nation rise en mas^e, and unite as one man against the 
common foe ; to see patriotism burn in every heart, as it 
did in '75 and run like lightning from Maine' to Georgia, 
from the Atlantic to the western boundary of the nation : 
and to see the states emulous, which should be the most 
prompt in furnishing their quota, and granting their aid in 
this most righteous war. But alas ! we must tell the world 
we are a divided people, for the world knows it ; like Israel 
of old, in like circumstances, many are averse to the war, 
and come not to the help of the Lord against the mighty. 
Some of the governors withhold the people, and prevent their 
coming to the help of the Lord, so that whole states have 
withheld their aid J some of the people withheld their aid 
from one motive, and some from another ; some are afraid, 
of the great cost the war will be ; they had rather the nation 
should continue to bear all the oppressions of the enemy than 
to be at the cost of a war ; some are afraid of the thousand 
ships of the enemy, and consider it presumption to go to 
war with such a gigantic power ; they feel we had better be 
easy and pay tribute, and be plundered, and have a few 
thousand of ous seamen enslaved, and some of them die un- 
der their sufferings, than to encounter the evils of a war. 

Others there are who are bosom friends to the enemy, who 
worship the same idol, monarchy, who have been distin- 
guished by her favors and enriched by her commerce, and by- 
supplying her with provisions, both lawfully and unlawfully. 
These men are violent against the war, they brand it with 
every epithet ; they say it is unjust, impolitic, and wicked. 
Some of them justify all the plunder, and murder, and man- 
stealing, and oppression of the enemy, and say we ought to 
bear it without a complaint, for Eiigiand is fighting tor the 
liberties of the world. Men of this description will give no 
aid themselves to the war, and do all they can to prevent o- 
thers. They rejoice at the defeats of our O'^'n arms, and 
mourn at the defeat of the enemy. Now I believe this con- 
du6t IS very offensive to a holy God. I fully believe the 
conduct of all who withhold their aid and help in this 
":vr;htecus contest in which our na ion is engaged, is repre- 
K'nbible. But tho^e who are taking sides with the enemy, 



19 

paliatingand justifying all their injuries, heaprd and heaped 
upon us, troiH love of British gold or love of Briiish monar- 
chy, and hatred to our own republican forms of government, 
who will not come themselves, and who try to prevent oih- 
ers irom coming up to the help of the Lord against the 
mighty — I believe in my heart such men are tories, and ob- 
noxious in the sight of heaven. And was there an inspired 
Deborah among us^ she would undoubtedl) pronounce a 
bitter curse upon them, as she did upon the inhabitants of 
Meroz, A curse will follow such characters. For look, 
my brethren at the fate of the tories of our revolution. Like 
Cain, whom God had cur^edj they wandered as exiles and 
vagabonds in the earth, shunned and abhorred by every one; 
a curse pursued chem rothc grave, if not further ; and it ev- 
er will haitors and tories. But as it was in Israel, so it is in 
our nation when called to arms, many of the governors and 
people have offered themselves willingly, yea some have done 
nobly, and particularly the people of Kentucky and Odio, 
Like Z.bulon and Napthali, have jeopardized their lives ev- 
en unto the death in the high places of the field. Notwith- 
standing the faint heartedness of some, and the opposition of 
others, yet the great body of the nation, of its real and phy- 
sical strength, are true patriots, are hearty in the cause, and 
are determined to die free before they will live slaves ; many 
of these offer themselves willingly, and arc coming up to the 
help of the nation against ihe mighty. 

7. I observe once more. A nation that engages in a just 
war, a war for the defence of her just rights, which is a war 
that God approves, such a war he considers as his own cause, 
and to help in such a war is to come to the help of the Lord, 
and if the nation humble themselves for their sins, and cry 
unto the Lord, he will be with them and grant them success. 
He did Israel, and I have no doubt he will our nation. The 
Lord went out before the little army of Israel, when they 
marched against the nine hundred chariots of war, and dis- 
comfited the enemy. And has not the Lord gone ouc before 
our little navy, when they have gone out to fight the thous- 
and ships of the enemy ? and what exploit'- have they done ! 
What yiftories have they achieved, to the lasting honor of 
the nation, and the astonishment of the world ? 



m 

It is admirable what our few ships of war have effected, 
U'hcn they have come in contact wirh the enemy. Two of 
their largest frigates have been sunk and another taken, and 
brought into our ports. One sloop of war has been sunk 
and several taken. In the most of these cases the enemy 
were equal, in some superior, yet they were dreadfully cut to 
pieces ; their vessels made wrecks, and many of their men 
killed and wounded, while our vessels have received but lit- 
tle injury, and but few men either killed or wounded. This 
cannot be accounted for upon any other principle, than the 
special interposition of heaven. On the sea the enemy bias 
oppressed us for twenty years : there they have plundered 
our property ; there they have enslaved our citizens. From 
their ships of war the cry of our poor seamen [covered with 
blood and wounds] has gone up to heaven. The Lord has 
been witness to their cruelty and oppression, on the ocean j 
and there he has given us success. Great Britain for twenty 
years, in all her wars, has never met with so much on the 
sea ro stain her pride, as she has experienced from her few 
gallant ships. Let the name of the Lord be praised who 
giveth us the victory. 

And our private armed vessels have met with great success^, 
Niles' Register states, that we have taken from the enemy 
since the war, 369 vessels in about nine months. Surely 
many of our valiant seamen have cause to exclaim with De- 
bora in the context, O my soul thou hast troddeu down strength. 

But our success on the land hitherto hath not been equal 
to that on the ocean. The failure of the northwestern army 
jn the outset deraaged the whole campaign on the frontiers, the 
last season. By the governor's withholding the men, & many 
of the militia refusing ta come up to the help of thcLord against 
the mighty, defeat and loss attended our arms in Canada. — 
But there our troops always signalized themselves when led 
to a6lion. The enemy there have suffered as much as we 
have. Many of the Indian towns have been laid waste, and 
jTiany of the savage barbarians have met the just reward of 
their bloody deeds It is easy to account for the want of 
success on the land. There has been want of men, of reg- 
ular troops, want of discipline and subordination, if not want 



21 

of system. All these will be remedied, I trust, the coming 
season, if the war continues, and the enemy will not listen to 
overtures for peace. And I have no doubt of the final issue. 
We shall finally be successful, although we have been b*.aten 
twice, yea three jimes, like the children of Israel againstGib- 
eah. Judges^ chapter 20th ; yet finally our enemy shall be 
smitten down in their liigh places, by the edge of the swor<!. 
for I am fully convinced the war on our part is juit and 
righteous; that the Lord approves it, and that he will turn 
it on our side, and enable us to bring the enemy to just and 
honorable terms of peace. 

But, my brethren and fricnd=, we as a nation, as a state, as 
a town, as families and individuals, have a great duty to do. 
And this duty calls upon us to enter upon it with all the 
heart. It is our duty to fast and pray, and humble ourselves 
before the great God. We should realize God's great good- 
ness to us and our nation, and be thankful j we should lake 
into view the number, grea'ness, and aggravations of our 
sins, and be humbled before God, and repent as in dust and 
ashes. Our sins are many, they have gone up over us 
as a thick cloud; they have reached heaven ; they have pro- 
voked God to anger, and he has suffered our enemies to op- 
press us, and bring war upon us, to punish us. We have 
cause to adopt the language of Daniel the prophet, and say, 
•* O Lord^ lue have sinned^ and have committed iniquity^ and 
have done iDickedty^ and have rebelled^ even by departing from 
thy fi-ecejits^ and from thy judgments O Lord^ righieomness 
belongeth unto thte ; but unto us confusion of facesy as at this 
dry But to the Lord our God belong mercies and Jorgivenesses^ 
though ive have rebelled against him* 

With humiliation, confession, and repentance of our sin, 
we should add fervent prayer. If we are a praying natioa 
and people ; if we pray in faith, and cry to God, he will 
hear and answer, and help us in this time of war. We 
should pray God to turn us as a narion to himself, and 
bless us. That he would bless the President and congress, 
and give them wisdom, fidelity and patriotism. That h« 
would unite the fteople, cement the confederation, and dis- 
pose the rulers and people in each state to do thsir du-.y, and 



22 

come up to the help of the Lord against the mighty. W 
should pray the Lord to give wisdom, valor and prudenc 
to our commanders, iiealth and courage to our soldiers am 
mariners ; shield them in the day of battle, and crown ou 
arms by sea and land with success, until our enemies are dis 
posed fo make a just and honorable peace. We should pray 
God to stay the pestihnce, and give us health in all our bor* 
tiers. We should implore him to bless the labors of the hus- 
bandman, make the earth fruitful, and favor us w'th a plen- 
tiful harvest. We should pray the Lord to put an end tc 
desolating wars, and bless all nations withptace and right- 
eousness. O let us pray God to pour his spirit upon us, 
and make us holy, and prepa e us for all sufferings on earthy 
ai.d the enjoyment of himself in heaven. 

O may the Lord hear our prayers and save our nation 
and all the glory shall be given to the Father^ So?:^ and Ho\ 
Ghost ^ world without end. Amen, 

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